Theory of Humility

Theory of Humility

Spiritual teachings say that humility is the key to many doors. I searched for it, but then I was told it must be in a lost and found. More precisely, lost within myself.

Humility is not something we possess. In my understanding (very little, I confess), the lack of it is a block to this and other virtues. It is like understanding when it's time to accept that you're not the king/queen of the world, the super-knowledgeable expert on life or whatever.

From experience and theory, the lack of humility goes by many other names:

Shyness

Shame

Jealousy

Anger

Arrogance

Lack of courage

Low self-esteem

Feeling of superiority

Feeling of inferiority

False humility

Depression

Don't you agree?

Descriptive example of the fifth item:

One day, replacing a professor at university, I taught a class for freshmen students. Freshmen. Freshmen.

Ah, arrogance, which has known me for a long time, arrived by express delivery, in a large and heavy package. In my total ignorance of life, I didn't give much importance to that class. After all... freshmen.

As always, I started the class by asking if the students knew what had happened in the previous class and what the day's class was about. They didn't know the answer. And neither did I (no, I had not taught the class before that).

But, in that 15-meter leap of low self-esteem and feeling of superiority, I had never been so rude to any class before. I spoke very angrily about how they weren't committing to the class.

That which could have been seen as arrogance was just a layer of low self-esteem.

Funny (is it?) how we shift the blame to others thinking we'll no longer take responsibility for ourselves, right?

When we don't have the courage to be who we are, we try to diminish others to try to seem bigger. Or better. Or worse (yes, we often think it's wonderful to be the worst. It's the crutch with the label 'victimization' written on it).

Or lost.